DIY, Apps or a Recommended Painter? How to Choose a Painter & Decorator

Three ways to get your home painted

1. DIY: It Can Look Easier on YouTube Than It Really Is

There is an enormous amount of painting advice online. You can find videos showing how to prepare walls, cut in around windows, paint ceilings, repair cracks and achieve a smooth finish.

This information can be very useful. The problem is that a short video can make the process look much easier than it is in a real room.

DIY painting involves more than applying the final coat of paint.

Professional-looking painting often depends heavily on preparation rather than simply putting paint on a wall.

You may need to:

• Remove loose or damaged paint
• Fill holes and cracks
• Sand uneven surfaces
• Repair small imperfections
• Protect floors, furniture and fittings
• Deal with previous poor paintwork
• Prepare woodwork
• Apply primer where necessary
• Choose the correct paint and finish
• Cut in accurately around ceilings, doors and windows
• Apply the correct number of coats
• Allow sufficient drying time

2. Hiring Through an App or Online Platform

Online platforms can make it easier to find tradespeople. You can usually compare profiles, read reviews and contact several people about your project.

That convenience is useful, but a profile on an app does not automatically mean that someone is the right painter for your particular job.

Read the reviews — not just the star rating

Look for comments about:

• Preparation
• Quality of the finish
• Reliability
• Communication
• Tidiness
• Completing the job
• Whether the customer would hire the person again

A large number of reviews can be useful, but consider whether the reviews relate to work similar to yours.

What does “vetted” actually mean?

Different platforms use different forms of verification. If a platform says that a trader is “vetted”, “verified” or “checked”, find out what that actually means.

It may refer to identity verification, references, insurance, qualifications, background checks or another form of screening. These checks do not necessarily tell you how well the person paints.

A trader can be verified by a platform and still not necessarily be the right painter for a particular project.

Look at the trader's own work

Ask for photographs of completed projects, particularly work similar to yours. If you need an entire flat redecorated, photographs of one small feature wall may not tell you much about the person's ability to manage a larger project.

3. A Recommendation From a Friend Isn't Always a Guarantee

Personal recommendations can be excellent. If someone you trust has recently had a great experience with a painter, that can be a valuable starting point.

But was the job actually similar to yours?

A recommendation is useful, but the project and the trader's experience still need to be checked.

A painter who did an excellent job decorating one bedroom may not necessarily have experience with a larger project involving several rooms, extensive preparation, damaged walls or detailed woodwork.

There is also a practical problem with recommendations: people can sometimes rely heavily on the trust behind the introduction and do fewer checks than they would with a stranger.

“He's a friend of my brother and he does painting.”

That is not necessarily the same as having a documented history of professional work.

There are real situations where homeowners have hired someone through a friend's recommendation and later experienced poor-quality work or an unfinished project. These examples do not mean that personal recommendations are unreliable. They show why the recommendation should be a starting point for checking someone, not the only check you make.

4. What Should You Check Before Hiring a Painter?

Regardless of how you found the person, consider asking the same basic questions.

Understand what the quotation includes

• Areas to be painted
• Surface preparation
• Ceilings and woodwork
• Paint brand and finish
• Who buys the materials
• Expected number of coats
• Repairs and additional preparation
• Estimated duration
• Total price or pricing method

5. How Do Professional Painters and Decorators Charge?

One of the questions homeowners often have is whether a professional painter charges by the hour, by the day, by the room or for the whole project.

There isn't one universal method. Many professional decorators quote for the particular work involved, while some platforms present traders' prices as an hourly rate.

The important question is not simply “What is the hourly rate?” It is: “What will the total project cost, and what exactly is included?”

6. Don't Choose a Painter Based Only on the Price

Price obviously matters. But painting is one of those jobs where the cheapest quotation isn't necessarily the cheapest overall outcome.

Consider the full picture:

Price + preparation + materials + workmanship + reliability + time + communication.

Someone charging less may be perfectly capable and offer excellent value. Someone charging more may also provide excellent work. The important thing is understanding what you are actually getting for the price.

7. So, Should You DIY or Hire a Professional?

A better question than “DIY or professional?” is: “What is the most sensible way to achieve the finish I want within my time and budget?”

DIY can make sense when:

• You enjoy DIY
• You have enough time
• The surfaces are already in good condition
• The project is relatively straightforward
• You are comfortable doing preparation and finishing work

Hiring a professional can make more sense when:

• You have several rooms to complete
• The walls need significant preparation
• You need a consistent finish
• You have limited time
• You don't have the equipment
• You want someone experienced to deal with unexpected problems

And if you decide to hire someone, how you found them is less important than how thoroughly you check them.

A Final Thought: Painting Is More Than Putting Paint on a Wall

The final result can depend heavily on what happens before the paint goes on. You can find excellent tradespeople through online platforms. You can find excellent tradespeople through personal recommendations. And you can certainly achieve good results yourself.

But none of these routes removes the need to do your own checks.

If a YouTube tutorial makes a painting project look incredibly easy, remember that you're watching the finished demonstration — not necessarily the hours of preparation, problem-solving and cleaning that happen around it.

Take your time choosing the approach, and don't be afraid to ask questions before the first brush touches the wall.

Frequently Asked Questions